


the universe's guide to the galaxy (and the boy who liberated it): a drabble collection

by organicjacket



Series: the universe's guide series [2]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Aliens, Angst, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Drabble Collection, Fluff, Gen, Humor, Post-Episode s05e29-32 Change Your Mind, Slice of Life, Steven Universe is a Diamond, Worldbuilding, and other characters that will appear later, but pre movie and future, but you dont have to read it to know whats going on, idk ive never written stuff like this before, ignore ao3s word count its wonky, literally just steven vibing in space, more tags later I think, or an attempt at worldbuilding, or somewhat canon-compliant, references to the universe's guide to humanity, steven doesnt actually go to space until like chapter 10, stevens emotional baggage, those original characters arent really that important but theyre just there
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:13:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 5,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28943505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/organicjacket/pseuds/organicjacket
Summary: Steven spends two years in space.Status: WIP(100-500-word drabbles)Current word count: 5800
Series: the universe's guide series [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2119521
Comments: 17
Kudos: 45





	1. You're a Diamond, Steven! (I'm a what!?)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven and Connie discuss what being a part of space royalty means. (500 words).

"So," Connie starts the conversation between the two, pressing her index fingers against her pursed lips. "How does it feel to be the gem equivalent of royalty?"

The ride home is busy with conversations and noise as the other gems converse amongst themselves - even inviting the Diamonds along for some of their discussions - albeit a bit awkward between the nine of them. The two of them shied away from the group, opting to sit down and rest due to fighting for literal hours back on Homeworld. Occasionally, some of the gems would check up on their well being and ask them if they needed anything, to which they replied that they were fine and just needed some time to think.

"It's a feeling, alright," Steven lightly chuckles, bending his knees towards himself. "And, it's also a little weird,"

He doesn't elaborate.

"Oookay," Connie nods encouragingly, nudging his arm a little. "And, what else?"

He furrows his eyebrows - what else was there to say? That he always thought that he was a Rose Quartz soldier - a mere peasant in the Diamonds' eyes? That his mom - **THE** Pink Diamond - led an entire rebellion against herself and then gave birth to the prince of literally all of gemkind? And somehow, he had managed to convince three literal _dictators_ \- who are also apart of his biological family - to come back to Earth with him and help corrupted gems? Or, how about when White -

"Steven," his knight says a little quieter this time, pulling him out of his spiraling thoughts. "Breathe with me. In and out -"

"No!" he shouts. His voice echoes throughout the ship, prying eyes watching him with vague curiosity. "I mean, no, no. I'm fine. I'm good. I'm just thinking..." 

"About...?" she prompts.

Again, he doesn't elaborate.

Some part of him - the dumb fourteen-year-old teenage boy part of him - thinks that this whole scenario is kinda funny. Like, what was he supposed to do now? Start wearing a cape and a crown while his gem family parades him around Beach City, declaring him the king of the world? No, that's ridiculous. The other part of him - the mature boy that had an unusually high amount of stress for someone his height and age - knows that soon, he'll have to go back to Homeworld again and start establishing peace and democracy while other kids his age are probably playing video games and worrying about their test on Friday.

(Saving the world sometimes sucked). 

"I'm just glad that I get to go home, cook my own food and dress myself," he tells Connie at last, deciding to keep his thoughts to himself this time and ignore the elephant in the room. She had already done so much for him. "I miss my video games."

( _And being a normal kid_ , goes unsaid).

"Yeah," Connie laughs. "Me too. I just can't wait to sleep in my own bed!" 

_Same here_ , he thinks to himself.

At least he doesn't have to wear a crown on his head. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [steven's voice but sad] bingo bongo


	2. Family Friendly Neighborhood War Zone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Greeting the newly uncorrupted gems goes well…but it could’ve gone better too. (200 words).

At first, it was fun. The gems tossed the remaining bubbled corrupted gems from the Burning Room into his mother's - uh - Rose's Fountain while he and the Diamond's watched with awe as they popped simultaneously. He swam to each and every gem, greeting them with welcoming arms and a goofy grin on his face when they stared at him with either hostility or confusion, neither of which brought down his exuberant mood for that short period of time he had with them.

Too bad it didn't last as long as he hoped.

"Will this last long?" Steven frowns, unsurprised.

"Not sure, it depends on how long until they realize that the Diamonds are here too." Garnet hums, amused.

The Rebellion gems and the Homeworld Gems were practically at each other's throats, separated by an invisible force in the pool as they exchanged threats of shattering and being taken as prisoners of war. The Diamonds sat far away from the faux battle zone, unsure about how to intervene. So they were no help whatsoever.

"Can't we all just get along peacefully!?" he waves his arms around for attention.

Either side of the 'war' gave him looks of resentment.

"No." 

Steven sighs. 


	3. Good News! She Lied!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven confronts Jasper about Pink Diamond and Rose Quartz. (100 words).

"...and that concludes the story of how Pink Diamond faked her shattering and became Rose Quartz, fell in love with a human, and then made me." Steven finishes the story with sweaty hands. "So, yeah."

He was lucky to catch Jasper right before she stalked towards the woods in the outskirts of town, said something about 'getting away from these defective gems', but he stopped her to tell her about what happened before she did.

"Huh," she grunts.

"Wow, you took that pretty well!" he smiles, almost hopeful at the quartz's change of heart.

Jasper turns and punches a tree.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is the chapter that made me want to write this fic haha


	4. Potluck

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven catches up with his human friends...literally. (500 words).

Steven brings his world-famous 'Fantastic Fries' to the second annual teenage version of an adult potluck of the year.

The Cool Kids decided to host a said potluck at the camping site located near the woods and city limits. They had invited him via mass text to their second try at a potluck, telling him to bring either food or party games or whatever teenagers brought to parties. Excited, Steven could barely sleep, eager to ignore the deep pit that had dwelled in his stomach after coming back from Homeworld and made his potluck recipe.

His friends all stop talking once they notice him arrive on Lion.

"Uh, hi?" he shifts uncomfortably under their bewildered expressions. "Why are y'all looking at me like that?"

"Steven!" Ronaldo breaks the awkward silence, his hotdog nearly falls from his plate - Kiki catches it before it hits the ground. "How did you get so tall!? Is this some sort of magical gem thing you can do now?"

He blinks. Once. Twice.

"What? No," Steven sets his pan down on the picnic table. "Well - I mean, yes? Kinda?" he shrugs. "I don't know! I just woke up like this!"

And that was only partly true. He remembers waking up a few days ago and suddenly being the height that he was supposed to be at age fourteen...which admittedly wasn't that much of a difference but - hey! At least he was a bit taller than he was before, right? Actually, he didn't even notice it until he struggled to put on his pants and the gems had pulled him aside to ask him about it after breakfast. 

"Wait a minute, Steven." Jenny raises an eyebrow. "How old are you anyway?"

Oh, that's easy.

"Fourteen, going on fifteen in a few weeks, why?" he frowns, unsure as to where this conversation was going.

And the entire crowd loses it - except for Lars, Sadie, and Connie, they already knew.

He thought that everyone knew how old he was, so it wasn't even a secret at this point. When he was eleven, he told nearly the entire town about his twelfth birthday, and only half of them responded with: Happy Birthday, Steven! or a 'Death is inevitable' joke that never bothered him in the slightest...or maybe that was just Lars and Sadie. Either way, it should've been pretty obvious from the start - but only if you ignore the ' I'm stuck in my eight-year-old body' part first, though. Then again, the majority of other teenagers never did half of the stuff he had done in their dreams or while playing RPGs.

(Huh, he had never thought about that before).

"Hey," Peedee sniffs the air and grimaces. "What's that smell?" 

To his left, charred remains of some type were burning up in flames on the grill - which he could gladly see over by the way.

"Oh no, I forgot about the burgers!" Sour Cream zips past them while Buck trails behind with a fire extinguisher. 

Being tall is weird.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> imagine being tall but your voice stays the same ever since you turned 13


	5. Fifteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He's finally another year older. (500 words).

Steven wakes up in the morning feeling weird, and not the 'I just had a magical growth spurt' weird, but the 'Something's wrong, I can feel it' kind of weird. His bed is uncomfortable beneath his back and he doesn't feel the weight of Lion on the opposite side of him. Luckily, M.C. Bear Bear was still in his arms, and his duvet was tucked on all sides of him, so that wasn't out of the ordinary. Still, it unnerved him to no end as he tried to figure out what was off about his situation.

Sitting up, he blinks away the sleepiness from his eyes as they try to adjust to the darkness. In front of him, two large windows stare back at him, light from an unknown source makes him cringe slightly. Normally, he'd expect his nightstand with his Cookie Cat alarm or the wall on his left, instead, he is met with shirts on hangers and boxes, both of which make him panic. He shoots up out of his 'bed' to survey his surroundings. Who did he possess this time?

"Woah, Steven - hey! It's okay! You're alright!" his dad cooly states from next to him. "You're just in the van! Nothing magical has happened to you this time, I promise!"

Hearing that doesn't really make him calm down from his paranoia, but it helps him relax a little. He throws off his covers and faces his dad, who has his hands up in defense while a guitar rested in his lap, and it takes him a minute to realize that he had his shield up and ready to fight. Dissipating said shield, he then looks around at the van itself. Why was he in the van anyway? Did something happen to the house? Was that why he was here and not in his own bedroom?

(More importantly: Are the gems okay?).

"The gems are fine, kiddo. They're just getting you out of the house for a bit while they set up." Dad answers for him, apparently noticing that he had said that out loud. The older man moves from his position beside him to wrap him in a bear hug. "Happy birthday!"

Oh, that's right. It's his birthday...

Oh, stars! It's his birthday!

Steven returns the hug in shared joy, shedding a couple of tears for some unknown reason he can't bring himself to know exactly why at the moment. How old was he now? Fifteen? Wow! What an improvement from being fourteen! He can't believe that he almost forgot his own birthday. Then again, things had been pretty rough this year, and he can worry about that stuff later. 

"Wait," he pulls away from the hug. "I have to get ready! Where are my clothes!?" 

"In the box on your right, but you're not gonna need them anytime soon." 

"What? Why not?" 

"Because it's two in the morning."

(Well, that explained why everything was so dark).

His dad laughs and ruffles his hair. 

"Happy birthday, Steven."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know about you guys but being fifteen was such a weird experience, like peak chaotic teenage energy kinda weird
> 
> (speaking of, what year do you guys think Steven was born? im guessing 2000 or 2002)


	6. That Game That People Play In a Pool Where They Sit On Each Other’s Shoulders And Fight Or Whatever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven wants to add a waterslide to his new bedroom; Bismuth completely agrees while Pearl completely disagrees. (300 words).

"We are not adding a waterslide to your new bedroom." Pearl chides before he can even show her his attempt at making a blueprint.

"Aw what!?" he pouts. "But I didn't even say anything this time!"

"Steven, I saw that drawing from a mile away. Besides, why would you want to install some type of aquatic apparatus to simulate an outdoor activity when you literally live right next to the ocean?" she raises an eyebrow, thinking that he would come to some sort of reasonable conclusion.

(And spoiler alert: he doesn't).

Steven flops on his back in his bed, frowning at his most recent designs for his bedroom. He already added a shelf reserved specifically for his stuffed animals, a mini-fridge, and a stage to practice his music on. So, why was adding a waterslide that connected from his room to the beach itself too much of a stretch?

"Relax Pearl, let the kid have his fun!" Bismuth chuckles, clapping a hand on Pearl's shoulder. "He saved the world and by extent, the universe, he deserves a waterslide!"

"Yeah! And Bismuth offered to make my room however I want, and a waterslide is definitely a must-have!" he gestures to the halfway renovated loft.

"I did say that." the blacksmith confirms.

"It's two against one, Pearl. You gotta give up some time." Steven grins, wanting Pearl to just let him have this, just this once.

But alas, Pearl is adamant.

"No, what you need is a way to contact Homeworld instead of going back and forth between planets with your ship." she insists. "Having a waterslide would just turn you into a raisin every hour of the day."

Steven uses his secret weapon.

Pearl refuses to back down.

Bismuth laughs so hard that she falls down the stairs, still laughing afterward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Steven's secret weapon is his puppy dog eyes


	7. Little Homeworld

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven comes up with a plan to integrate gems into human society. (100 words). (Experimental Chapter).

~~Gemworld~~

No, too close to home.

~~Gemtown~~

Nope.

~~Stevenland~~

Nah, that'll make some of the gems suspicious.

~~Beach City But For Gems (BCBFG for short)~~

Long.

~~Rock Village~~

Offensive.

~~Gem City~~

It's a good start, but it doesn't fit.

~~Homeworld But Better~~

Hey, maybe that'll work - hm, nah, scratch that.

~~Homewor-~~

~~Homelan-~~

~~Hometow-~~

No, no, they don't need a reminder of their home planet.

(But wouldn't it make sense to stick to some of their roots while they make the Earth their home?).

He scribbles out the rest of his previous ideas and writes with big letters: **LITTLE HOMEWORLD**.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you can't read the crossed-out text: Gemworld, Gemtown, Stevenland, Beach City But For Gems (BCBFG for short), Rock Village, Gem City, Homeworld But Better, Homewor-, Homelan-, Hometow-
> 
> (I like to think that if the gems ever decide to branch out to other places besides Beach City, Little Homeworld would definitely be the gem capital)


	8. Like A Fish Out Of Water

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven and Lapis visit an aquarium. (200 words).

"I'm not gonna lie, I'll miss this," Steven sighs, holding his hand up to the dolphin exhibit's glass tank. 

"Miss what?" Lapis tilts her head slightly.

A dolphin curiously swims towards him, pressing its beak to where his hand was placed. He smiles at the gesture and giggles when the dolphin nods at him and turns away. Still, he doesn't remove his hand.

"The Earth, I mean." he answers. "I'll be thousands of lightyears away from home with new people, plants, and animals. Sure, I've been to Homeworld before, more than once actually, but I have no idea what it's like out there in space! They probably don't even have oceans!"

Lapis doesn't say anything at first, her eyes look vacant as they stare at the pod of dolphins dancing around each other playfully. He feels his heart sink a little, it was probably insensitive - and pretty stupid - of him to say that. Stars, this is why he never - 

"I've been to hundreds of planets when I worked for Homeworld. And everywhere I went, it was the water that never changed," the former terraformer places her hand on top of his head. "Don't worry, Steven. Your ocean isn't going anywhere."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wonder if some poor fishermen, sailors, or divers have ever stumbled upon malachite when she was chained to the bottom of the ocean...maybe she became some sort of a cautionary tale of some sorts


	9. One Small Step For The Earth; One Giant Leap For The Universe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He's just really glad that no one decided to blow up the moon. (500 words).

The view from the lighthouse's telescope never does the moon any justice.

From up here in the moon base, it's breathtaking. Even though it was essentially a space rock punching bag billions of years ago, it never fails to show up every night with the stars, flaws, and all. It's no wonder why mankind had wanted to step foot on it for as long as it had existed. 

Somehow, it reminded him of himself a little. The moon revolves around the Earth, and his whole life was spent revolving around the Crystal Gems. The moon controls the ocean's tides, and he kind of controls the gems in a way, no one falls apart anymore, no one relives the past. The moon is a part of the Earth, having had formed after an asteroid slammed into it, and he is half-gem (and half-human). The moon is loved by many, despite its imperfections on the surface, and he - well, he can relate to that a little. 

(Maybe things would have turned out differently if his mother hadn't also owned the moon coincidentally).

Swiping back and forth on the observation orb, he finds himself rotating between the same three places. Beach City is awake and bustling, unaware of the boy on the moon who wishes that he was there with them. His dad's car wash is empty, the van is parked near the entrance, like usual, he's plucking a few strings on his guitar, smiling to himself from time to time. The beach house looks a bit different, the gems are discussing blueprints for Little Homeworld and adding new ideas as they go. He feels content with the changes that he helped make. 

Pulling his hand away from the orb, he exits the cloud-like room and jumps up the stairs towards the observatory. The glass windows give him a clear view of the moon's surface and the Earth, and he stares at it with a longing sense. Sitting on his mother's old throne, he wonders if the moon has ever felt this way about the Earth the same way he did before. (If the moon had feelings).

(He's going to Homeworld next week. It makes his head hurt the longer the thought stays in his head, and he fears that it won't go away anytime soon. Homeworld is (and will be) nothing like the Earth, the gems there will be less understanding than they are back home). 

There's something special about being able to watch over the Earth hundreds of miles away from it. It gives him a weird Diamond-y vibe when he thinks about it, and that's probably kind of contradictory since he wants nothing to do with being a Diamond. He knows that he'll always be there to protect his planet, so, at least that'll never change. 

His planet. Huh. That doesn't actually sound too bad.

( _No_ , he thinks to himself, _I don't own the Earth, nobody does_ ).

He's just really glad that no one decided to blow up the moon.


	10. Diplomacy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven and the Gems finally leave for Homeworld. (100 words).

The Earth gets smaller and smaller with every passing second. It's sort of bittersweet in some type of way: on one end, he's fulfilling his purpose of making things better for everyone in the entire galaxy, and on the other, he's leaving everything he's been taught to protect behind. Every planet he sees pulls at invisible rose-thorned strings in his chest.

(Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl stubbornly came with, refusing to leave him alone to deal with the Diamonds, much to their dismay).

It was then when he finally realizes the emotion that had clawed its way into his skull:

Homesickness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and that concludes part 1 :)
> 
> (don't forget to drink water and take your meds)


	11. Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven comes to a realization. (100 words).

Steven shoots awake after an impromptu nap on Garnet's lap, hitting his head on the ship's metal wall behind him.

"Ouch," Amethyst winces. "That's gotta hurt."

It did hurt, and he, frankly, did not care. He had more painful matters to worry about. In his dream, he could see Onion's TV on the final season of Crying Breakfast Friends, and the few spoilers that he was trying to avoid.

"I'm gonna miss the epilogue series of Crying Breakfast Friends: Dessert!" he gasps, completely and utterly out of context.

The gems stare at him like he just grew a second head.


	12. Pink Diamond’s Secondary Location (or Things Steven’s Heard About Himself on Homeworld)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barely a week on Homeworld and the rumors are already starting to get to him. (200 words). (Experimental Chapter).

_"Pink Diamond calls herself 'Steven Universe' now."_

_"He claims to be a hybrid of sorts."_

_"He's an unorthodox permafusion of a Diamond and an organic. It's absolutely horrifying!"_

_"He brought the Diamonds to their knees begging for mercy after the display of his uncanny powers."_

_"Did you hear about what happened in White Diamond's Headship? I heard that he got angry at her for exercising her right of perfection and flawlessness, destroying thousands of years of hard work in a fit of rage."_

_"Do you think he manipulated the Diamonds into following his every beck and call?"_

_"Well, he is half-Diamond, so perhaps his aura was somehow mixed with his human miasma."_

_"There's a ton of talk about a rebellion spearheaded by some of the higher class gems in Yellow Diamond's Court, they plan to attack him once he's truly alone."_

(The thought of that last one keeps him awake throughout the entire night, it scares him. The gems are "asleep": Amethyst is sprawled out on the sofa forged by the Pebbles, Pearl has her eyes closed and a book on her face, and Garnet... is doing whatever she does at night. He clutches his shirt tighter around his midsection).


	13. Alone On A Friday Night? Stars, Me Too

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven gets bored waiting around for the gems to return to the palace. (100 words).

Maybe telling the gems about the potential assassination attempt on a (subjectively) beautiful Friday night on Homeworld was a bad idea.

(Or, at least to Steven, it was).

Now he's temporarily banned from leaving the (again, subjective) comforts of Pink Diamond's Dreamhouse. Guards were stationed at almost every door inside of the palace. He was trapped, technically, but at least he had a functioning refrigerator and TV. 

( _"You shouldn't be anywhere near the fight! You're too important!"_

_"I am not!"_

_"Yes, you are!"_

_"No!"_

_"Why won't you let me do this for you, Rose!?"_ ).

Pearl never apologized for saying that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Come live with us in the palace," they said "There's a room waiting for you," they said


	14. I Am Very Small, And I Have No Idea What Is Going On, So You Can Imagine The Kind Of Stress That I Am Under

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They were saying something about canceling the latest gem productions on the other colonies...or was it something about going over plans to ease the Gempire into a democracy? (300 words).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (you know that feeling when you were/are in school and the teacher calls on you to answer a question and you have no idea what they said? yeah...).

The Diamonds were saying something important. The words came and went out of their mouths but, Steven couldn't make himself focus. It's been like this for twenty minutes, his mental interpretation of a clock ticking the seconds away loudly echoed in his mind. He's not even sure why or how this happened, but it did, and it seemed like it didn't want to relent anytime soon.

Tapping his fingers against the throne the Diamonds just 'had to have' custom made specifically for him, he falls into a familiar rhythm with intense nostalgia. He wouldn't be that surprised if he found out that Pink Diamond did the exact same thing eons ago, trying and failing to focus on whatever important thing that was relevant at the moment. (She probably had, because he had sung an entire song about it once). 

(And that brought up the question: did she know about the Cluster? Had Yellow Diamond said something about it during one of her monologues, and his mom just casually zoned out? Or did she truly not know and just spent thousands of years frolicking on a literal geo-weapon destined to explode at any given interval?).

"...a wonderful idea! What do you think, Pi-Steven?" Blue Diamond looks down at him expectantly, startling him when her voice seeped into his nonexistent train of thought.

Instantly, his face flushes with embarrassment. 

"Um..." he trails off. The others stare at him with raised eyebrows, making him feel sort of dumb.

(Stars, what were they talking about? Ending the latest gem productions? Or maybe were they going over plans to end the dictatorship on Homeworld?)

Instead of answering, he decides to take the easy way out.

"I have to go to the bathroom!" he jumps out of the throne, completely underestimating the fall to the ground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [steven’s voice]: no thoughts, head empty
> 
> (also steven: that one math meme, you know the one)


	15. That One Meme Of That Guy Presenting A Sword And The Taller Guy Accepts It With Grace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven gets gifted a sword. (100 words).

"You're free!" he shouts as soon as the triangular door to Blue Diamond's forge opens. His voice echoes over the hammering and clanking of the Amazonites and their Morganite's harsh commands. 

It gets quiet for a few seconds, and he thinks that maybe this wasn't the best approach. That is until the entire forge busies themselves with metallic weaponry and arms.

An Amazonite kneels down on one knee, her head low, and her arms raise a sword with a pink diamond etched onto its hilt.

"My Diamond," she says, offering the sword to him.

He blinks.

"Wow, thanks?" he replies. 

\---

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i made the meme to go along with this (EDIT: I figured out how to use Ao3's image system! So you should be able to see the image now!)


	16. The Streets Have Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everybody's staring; since when did that bother him? (400 words).

The streets of Homeworld start to get boring the more they venture inwards towards the shipyard stationed near Pink Diamond's headquarters - or whatever she called the place that she did her Diamond duties in.

( _"Looks like you have a fanbase now," Garnet had said earlier, pushing up her visor fondly. "A group of Moonstones want to meet you at the shipyard, they seem very excited."_ ).

Amethyst volunteered to be his personal bodyguard today. She shapeshifted into her Purple Puma form to 'intimidate' gems that had 'beef' with him. (The gems hadn't said anything about the potential hitmen (hitgems?) after him, even though they had promised that they would). 

He rests his arms on top of Amethyst's head, breathing in and out in a rhythm to control the nervousness of meeting the new gems. The silence in the atmosphere forced him to recite every single word that was going to come out of his mouth. (Stars, what is wrong with him nowadays?). Ever so often, his stomach would feel light and tingly - presumably butterflies. 

He thinks that someone is watching him, it must've been his rising paranoia, their judgemental eyes bore into the back of his skull. Watching. Waiting. Watching. Waiting.

(What were they waiting for? For him to mess it all up? To turn out to not be the hero they needed for thousands of years?).

When he was younger, he liked the attention, that was his thing. He'd use this to an advantage, be the mediator, the leader, and the friend that everyone needed. It might've been selfishness or that small hint of loneliness. As he got older, he realized that he didn't need to be watched twenty-four seven for every little mistake he made. He was human - well, half-human, but the point still stands. Regardless, he liked being needed, that was another one of his 'things'. 

On Homeworld, gems seemed to do the same for him.

( _Please don't bend over backward for me_ , he had thought to himself when elite gems came to greet him).

"We're here." Amethyst nudges him slightly once they reach the entrance of the shipyard. When he doesn't answer, she frowns. "Hey, dude, we don't have to go inside if you don't feel comfortable.

"I'm okay," he reassures her. "Let's go. I can do this - I have to do this."

The pairs of eyes that he feels watching him never seem to go away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [steven]: oh boy! i'm so excited to liberate homeworld and save the galaxy with peace and love!!! :D 
> 
> [steven's brain as soon as he gets to homeworld]: i said we insecure today


	17. Phone Call Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven has the best cellular service; P-Mobile and Tint could never. (500 words). (Experimental chapter)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's 500 words in this, I swear, Ao3's word count is wonky

"Hello! This is Connie Maheswaran! I am very sorry that I am not able to answer the phone right now, but if you leave a message, I'll be sure to get back to you soon!"

**[BEEP]**

* * *

**[THREE (3) VOICEMAIL(s) SENT TO** 🍓StrawberryKnight🍓 **]**

**[PLAY VOICEMAIL ONE (1)]**

**[STEVEN]** : Hey, Connie! It's me, Steven! I mean, you already knew that, of course, but just in case you somehow lost your phone on Homeworld... or the Pebbles took it - wait. How do I start these over -

**[END VOICEMAIL ONE (1)]**

* * *

**[PLAY VOICEMAIL TWO (2)]**

**[STEVEN]** : Connie! Hi! Ignore that last voicemail, nothing suspicious going on here, haha... I swear that I haven't forgotten how to talk to you. How are you? How's life back on Earth? Things have been pretty stre-fun here on Homeworld, they've started calling me Steven now, slowly - but hey! It's progress! The gems are still keeping me - wait - wait! No! Don't fall -

**[Sounds of scattered papers hitting the floor followed by Steven's incoherent muttering plays for the rest of the message.]**

**[END VOICEMAIL TWO (2)]**

* * *

**[PLAY VOICEMAIL THREE (3)]:**

**[STEVEN]:** So, uh... those last two voicemails, heh... please pretend that you never heard any of those. Ah, who am I kidding? You've probably already memorized everything that I said in that beautiful - I mean, intelligent brain of yours... yeah, yeah, that's what I meant to say...

**[Awkward silence. There's a clearing of a throat somewhere.]**

**[STEVEN]** : I guess that I should update you on the happenings. Remember how I was talking about how Pearl is teaching me Gem Glyph basics? Well, I've been teaching the Pebbles English! They're picking it up pretty quickly, actually, and now they can say the ABCs forwards, backward, and sideways - don't ask me how, because I don't know either. Um... the Diamonds have started talking to each other again. The four of us, with the gems, went to Blue Diamond's pool thingy, and I tried singing at the bottom of the pool like my mom did when she was younger. It was pretty funny because the Diamonds were trying to figure out the song but couldn't really hear it because my bubble blocked the soundwaves! Amethyst made the biggest cannonball I have ever seen in my entire life, and Pearl actually laughed this time! 

**[He laughs that familiar boyish laugh.]**

**[STEVEN]** : And, what else - oh! I almost forgot! Bismuth and some of the uncorrupted gems finally installed the new warp pad in the observatory, so now I can warp from here to home whenever I want! I'm coming back to Earth for New Years, we're having a party at my house this time, so you and your parents are invited like always, we can watch the fireworks together or watch a movie in my new room - if you want to. Uh... I think that's all I gotta talk about, for now, I guess, um... I love y-

**[END VOICEMAIL THREE (3)]**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it's like what they always say: "Third time's the charm!"


	18. Text Message Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven, it's 3am. (100 words). (Experimental Chapter).

**[🍓StrawberryKnight🍓]**

**[You]** : i forgot to tell you in that voicemail that i got a sword from an amazonite 😅

 **[You]** : its rlly cool but not as cool as urs ⚔️

 **[You]** : idk where it is tho, i think peal

 **[You]** : pearl, srry autocorrect

 **[You]** : i think pearl confiscated it in her gem somewhere and she wont tell me why smh 🤷😔😶

 **[You]** : which sucks cause i was gonna send you a pic of it with me posing lol

 **[You]** : afhlsdfjlalkflkajsdflk

 **[You]** : srry, amethyst stole my phone, getting her back ttyl

**(Read 3:25 AM)**

**[🍓StrawberryKnight🍓** **is typing...]**

 **[🍓StrawberryKnight🍓]** : Steven, it's 3am.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> steven is the type of person that would probably use emojis every time they send a text message and honestly i can relate


	19. Pole-lih-ticks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, no need to get political. (200 words).

Zircons were lawyers. Everyone and their Diamonds knew that.

(And man, can they talk).

It was kind of his fault, though. He had wanted to give the Homeworld gems the chance to speak their minds freely for once without the fear of being bubbled or shattered. As always, it went well.

"...and then, she looked me straight in the vision spheres and said - do you know what she said? - she said: 'Contact me when you've rewritten your full report'," Red Zircon throws her hands up angrily. "The audacity of that - that pebble!"

By now, Steven had zoned out. It's starting to become a really bad habit of his when discussing Homeworld politics. 

"Thank you for your time, My Steven." she finishes. Her arms struggle anxiously to not form the Diamond salute.

"Sure," he mumbles. Pearl side-glances him. It takes him half a minute, but he sits upon the throne professionally before speaking. "I-I mean, yeah, you're welcome." 

Red Zircon doesn't move. The two of them enter a silent staring contest, her solid gaze refusing to leave unless he said what she wanted to hear. Right. Of course.

"That will be all..." he eventually gives in.

She hums triumphantly and leaves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> shoutout to my brother for saying the word politics exactly like this without any explanation whatsoever


	20. Is This Pink Diamond's Human Zoo?; No, This Is Steven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kids these days, I'll tell you what. (300 words).

Steven's Diamond Communicator - a gift from Yellow - plays its famously well-known Diamond chime.

In the days of Eras One and Two, Pearls, or even the Diamonds themselves would answer with the intent of turning away the gem who dared to waste their Diamond's time with sputtering nonsense. But, that was then, this is now. And now meant that he was basically beginner's practice for contacting the Diamonds on something that didn't have to do with updates on colonization attempts.

"Is this Pink Diamond's Human Zoo?" The voice on the other end states.

Currently, he was trapped in a mess of screens filled to the brim with Gem Glyph - even though he can't fully read it, he tries to translate it the best he can in his head - and pictures of halfway dead colonies that could use a cleanup effort. (The gems offered to help... and he regrets refusing offered help). He's starting to wonder if he'll need glasses soon because of the blue light reflections. 

"No, this is Steven," he answers without even looking up at the gem - which was pretty rude but he swears that he can multitask! "We don't kidnap humans and put them in zoos anymore."

"Huh, well, that's too bad," The gem huffs unapologetically. "'cause I've got a fifteen-year-old boy here, still in his Cookie Cat-themed pajamas like it totally isn't three o'clock in the afternoon on Earth." 

Wait a minute. 

Steven pulls away from his 'paperwork' to gawk at the familiar voice he knew he recognized.

"Lars?" he guesses, squinting at the blurry image that appears from behind the mass of screens surrounding him.

In the background, he could hear snickers from various others and Lars'(?) voice telling them to be quiet. 

Too bad the screen shuts off before he can question what just happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that (technically) ends Part 2!
> 
> Don't forget to drink water and take your meds! (and make sure you take a break from the screen every once in a while)


	21. Steven's Claws-trophobic (It Means That He's Afraid Of White Diamond)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stop it, White! You're scaring him! (500 words).

_("Now, Starlight, this has gone on long enough." )._

Steven wakes up after yet another impromptu nap in the Throne Room. 

(It seems like he's been having more and more of those nowadays, and he has no idea why).

He's supposed to have a meeting with White Diamond in a few minutes. She was very vague about her reason as to why she wanted to meet with him, although, he kind of suspected that it might be to talk about his plans on bringing the news to the gems in the other colonies. He's getting better at trying to hold a conversation with her, for example, she didn't really say much when he, the gems, and the Diamonds all hung out at the pool thingy, but he could tell that she was warming up to the idea of interacting with her fellow Diamonds again.

_(She was telling him lie, after lie, after lie - until she hit a sore spot that made it feel like he was losing his mind)._

He'll think more about that later.

The soft whispers from the gems in the corner pushed the memory further into the back of his brain. They've been like this for the past couple of days, always huddled together somewhere and talking amongst themselves, looking over at him occasionally. It's made him feel left out again. Do they not trust him enough now?

_("You became Rose Quartz to deceive your pathetic friends, and now you've improved on that because you're even deceiving yourself")._

Was it selfish of him to pretend to think what White did to his human and gem half was something that should only be kept between himself, White, and Connie? Yeah, maybe. They've come so far already. 

A couple of guards pull back the pink curtains, and there she stands.

White Diamond stood in the entrance, her posture pristine and proper, and her hands clasped together. The gems stop talking to each other once they take notice of her and make their way towards him while giving her judging stares. The gem matriarch pays no attention to them and instead looks at him with her piercing Diamond eyes, complete with a small smile. 

_(And her long, sharp, black fingernails piercing into his stomach, scraping at the gem embedded inside-)._

He shakes away his self-doubts and smiles back. White's smile seems fake most of the time, but he appreciates the effort of trying to not be uncomfortable in a situation where she and "lower class gems" are classified as equals. And to be honest, it's better than that malicious grin she had on her face when she tore them - _him_ \- apart from his body.

(No, no, he knows that he isn't a fusion... right?).

Spacing out for a second, he realizes that he doesn't want to talk to her again, at least, not now.

(But, for the sake of the universe, he'll just have to keep this up for the rest of his life, and no one will suspect a thing). 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *amethyst's voice*: she's just standing there, meanacingly!  
> \---  
> if you asked me how many times I've watched cym (season 5), i would not be able to give you a correct answer


End file.
